British writer and video-game developer Dan Houser had been on many camping trips along Saranac Lakes in the Adirondacks when he finally invited his wife and children to join him in the wild three summers ago. It could have gone comically wrong: Krystyna, an an entrepreneur, is a native New Yorker accustomed to life in the fast lane, and their youngest was all of three at the time. But in a perfect twist of fate, "I fell in love instantly," Krystyna muses. "The water, the mountains, the pine trees–I've never been more relaxed. Seeing the kids, Dan, and myself calm down that weekend was the deciding factor. I was like, 'If we're going to lead chaotic lives in the city'"–the family of five is based in Brooklyn Heights–"'we should commit to this place'" as a summer sanctuary.

A secluded gazebo takes in views of Saranac Lake.

The Adirondacks have long served as a respite for fashionable city dwellers. The great camps of the turn of the 20th century claimed Astors, Vanderbilts, Rockefellers, and Morgans, whose wilderness retreats allowed them to commune with nature in grand style. Crafted out of native materials to blend in with the surroundings, the rustic estates featured exposed logs, outsize stone replaces, and the peace and quiet of six million acres of surrounding state park. It’s historically been a place to disconnect—and it refreshingly remains so to this day.

The front porch beckons. Vintage bamboo-and-wicker rocking chair; Miles Redd for Ballard Designs outdoor sofa wears a perennials acrylic.

Reds and greens effortlessly blend in a guest house bedroom. The custom headboard by Miles Redd for Ballard Designs wears a plaid by Suzanne Kasler for Ballard Designers ; wallpaper by Jasper.

The camp the Housers now own was built in the 1920s and sits at the end of a rambling driveway that takes 17 minutes to traverse. “It’s back to nature immediately,” Krystyna says with a blissful sigh. “From the beginning of the driveway until you reach the house, you can feel the stress level going down a few notches.” Upon arrival, there’s a main lodge, a guest cottage, and a boathouse with postcard views of the lake. So enchanting is the property and site that its previous owners held on to it for more than five decades. It had good bones and good karma. It just needed a refresh.

A custom wallpaper by Iksel-Decorative Arts wraps the master bedroom. Vintage Victorian maple chaise lounge; vintage chesterfield velvet sofa; 20th-century French gilt-metal side table; custom canopy bed.

For that Krystyna turned to Miles Redd of the AD100 firm Redd Kaihoi . He had gloriously revamped the Housers' town house several years before, and "he knows who we are and how we live," she says One caveat: They wanted the camp to be ready by the summer. That meant he had six months to overhaul 14 bedrooms, a dozen bathrooms, and everything in between. “We were very strategic,” Redd says of the process. “We were at the mercy of local contractors, so we limited everything to woodwork.” Marble and showers were out. Traditional soaking tubs were in. Old fashioned green roller shades line every window in lieu of curtains. “We chose things that were in stock and worked,” he says.

Krystyna and her children–with German Shepherd Iggy–play table tennis in the rec room. Butterfly tennis table; painted plywood table by Piet Hein Eek .

The end result is “more Gstaad than Saranac Lake,” as Redd puts it. Think glamorous fabrics and deep, rich hues against the rustic backdrop of original wood paneling. In the great room, cozy club chairs and an oversize window seat are dressed in a green-and-white fern print that is a wink to Redd’s love of preppy decoration. Alongside the taxidermy and bows-and-arrows that came with the home, a canoe now hangs overhead with a suit of samurai armor at the helm. It is perfectly centered in the window so “it looks like he’s on a majestic lake sailing off into the sunset,” Redd notes.

As is par for the course in Redd’s milieu, historical references abound. The boathouse from the Hitchcock movie Rebecca was one: “It’s all chintz, Chinese furniture, and chinchilla—such a chic little thing,” the designer says. (Brushing aside, of course, the fact that the film’s namesake met her death there.) Elsewhere, inspiration from Charleston farmhouse, artists Vanessa Bell and Duncan Grant’s Bloomsbury-set magnet, nods to Dan’s English roots. Take the master bedroom, a luxe bohemia with custom-printed Aleppo Red–wrapped walls, a canopy bed, and a tufted velvet sofa atop a Persian carpet. “No one was ever going to refresh this too much, so we needed to make it endure,” Redd says.

Paintings by Orlando Norie hang in the master bedroom. Sconce from Circa Lighting .

The study features a Randolph Morris wood soaking tub. Antique rugs purchased at Doyle .

A split staircase leads up to the family quarters. The children’s rooms are wrapped in delightful wallpapers of flowers and vines, with bed frames upholstered in a red-and-white gingham for the couple’s daughters and cobalt-blue for their son. Each bedroom has a pair of double beds and two daybeds with trundles so friends can pile in for sleepovers. “There was a week last summer where we were maxed out,” Krystyna says. “Every bed was taken, and someone was sleeping on the floor. It was fantastic— those are my favorite days.”

The high-gloss kitchen floors are painted in Benjamin Moore 's Chrome Green.

Meals are taken informally throughout the day, with everyone coming together for dinner. “I implemented every man for himself at breakfast and lunch,” Krystyna explains. “I love cooking, but there is a fine line between that and being a short-order chef.” Last summer was spent testing recipes for her future cookbook based on microbiome health. “My older children have really learned to cook up here,” she adds. “When we’re in the city, the kids are focused on school and extracurriculars, as most children are. Up here, you can focus on the basics.”

The Housers on the Lake.

While there are plenty of creature comforts, there’s no air-conditioning, television, or Wi-Fi. “It’s a tech-free house,” Krystyna says. “People read on the porch, go out in boats, play tennis; my daughters build forts and fairy houses. Being in a quiet place really allows you to tap into your creativity.” There is a projector for streaming movies once a week, but even those tend toward the nostalgic. Last summer’s favorite was The Sound of Music. “One of our neighbors doesn’t have electricity. Totally off the grid. We haven’t gone that far, and I wouldn’t, but I think it’s important for our family to disconnect and enjoy the quiet.”

The scale of the property offers plenty of opportunity to explore and get lost. Nothing about the landscape is manicured or designed. Says Krystyna, “It’s just nature.” Adding to the serendipity of it all, the home came as something of a surprise to Dan and the children. “It was really a gift to them,” she explains. “They didn’t see it for the first time until it was completely decorated.” She adds: “I’m hoping this house stays in our family for generations. I see it welcoming our kids’ families and eventually us passing it off to them.” It is, in fact, so captivating that they rarely venture far from it. “Every year we have great plans to go camping,” she says, “but inevitably we end up staying home. It’s really difficult to leave this place.”